Mplx (NYSE:MPLX) Cut to “Buy” at StockNews.com

StockNews.com downgraded shares of Mplx (NYSE:MPLX) from a strong-buy rating to a buy rating in a report issued on Monday morning.

Other equities analysts also recently issued research reports about the stock. Royal Bank of Canada restated an outperform rating and set a $47.00 price objective on shares of Mplx in a report on Wednesday, August 28th. Barclays cut their price target on shares of Mplx from $46.00 to $45.00 and set an overweight rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, September 16th. UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of Mplx from $49.00 to $51.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 18th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Mplx from $47.00 to $50.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of Buy and a consensus target price of $46.56.

Mplx Trading Down 0.5 %

NYSE:MPLX opened at $44.88 on Monday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $42.68 and a 200 day moving average of $41.75. The company has a quick ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41. Mplx has a 52 week low of $34.52 and a 52 week high of $45.24. The stock has a market capitalization of $45.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.57, a PEG ratio of 1.24 and a beta of 1.37.

Mplx (NYSE:MPLX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 6th. The pipeline company reported $1.15 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.98 by $0.17. Mplx had a return on equity of 32.68% and a net margin of 35.95%. The firm had revenue of $3.05 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.96 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.91 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 13.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Mplx will post 4.24 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Mplx Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 9th were issued a $0.85 dividend. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 7.58%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 9th. Mplx’s payout ratio is 87.63%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Mplx

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of MPLX. Sanctuary Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Mplx during the second quarter worth about $826,000. Cetera Investment Advisers boosted its position in Mplx by 4.8% in the 2nd quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 140,154 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $5,969,000 after purchasing an additional 6,469 shares in the last quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC grew its stake in shares of Mplx by 6.8% during the 2nd quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC now owns 22,758 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $969,000 after purchasing an additional 1,457 shares during the period. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. increased its holdings in shares of Mplx by 12.6% during the 2nd quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 16,888 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $719,000 after purchasing an additional 1,889 shares in the last quarter. Finally, NewEdge Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Mplx by 23.4% in the 2nd quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 24,540 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $1,045,000 after purchasing an additional 4,660 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 24.25% of the company’s stock.

About Mplx

MPLX LP owns and operates midstream energy infrastructure and logistics assets primarily in the United States. It operates in two segments, Logistics and Storage, and Gathering and Processing. The company is involved in the gathering, processing, and transportation of natural gas; gathering, transportation, fractionation, storage, and marketing of natural gas liquids; gathering, storage, transportation, and distribution of crude oil and refined products, as well as other hydrocarbon-based products and renewables; and sale of residue gas and condensate.